"The homebuilding industry is supportive of a stormwater utility fee for Anne Arundel County. Unlike new residential communities or those about to come online a majority of older neighborhoods in this county have little or no storm water management. Some older communities with under funded Home Owners Associations (HOAs) find themselves ill-prepared to pay for costly repairs and upkeep to their stormwater management facilities as well. Because of the expense of retrofitting older neighborhoods, new development is always asked to mitigate runoff from adjacent communities. That cost is borne by the new home purchaser.."
Susan Stroud Parker
Co-Director, Government Affairs, Home Builders Association of Maryland

Anne Arundel needs to follow in the steps of Montgomery County, and others to establish a Stormwater Utility, a critical step in improving the conditions of our waterways and the Chesapeake Bay. Eliminating urban stormwater runoff is of paramount importance if we are going to truly restore creeks, streams, and ponds to their natural state and will significantly reduce the amount of pollution that flows into the bay. We support this initiative 100%.
Chris Fick, MaryPirg

We endorse your effort to protect our cherished waterways!
Caroline Taylor
For A Rural Montgomery

Weems Creek Conservancy supports a Watershed Restoration Fund.

Generals Highway Council of Civic Associations voted enthusiastically to endorse the Fund.

Annapolis Neck Peninsula Federation voted to endorse the Fund

Belle Grove Improvement Association voted to endorse the Fund.

Long Point Improvement Association Board voted a letter of support for the Fund.

Cottage Grove Homeowners Association voted a letter of support for the Fund.

South Arundel Citizens for Responsible Development voted to endorse the Fund.

Chesapeake Ecology Center supports the Fund.

Kent McNew, Executive Director of the Board of Eastern Petroleum endorses the Fund.

Walt Petrie agrees with the Fund's concept (full endorsement yet to come).

Ron Jordan, Marty's Bag Works, Edgewater, supports the Fund.

Jeff Clement, Clement Hardware, Severna Park, supports the Fund.

Lee Hardy, Marine Engines Unlimited, Inc. Galesville, supports the Fund.

As a business owner, I support the formation of a Fund to resolve the impacts of stormwater runoff in Anne Arundel County.
Shoreline Canvas, Tyler Hancock, owner

I congratulate you for your efforts in educating the community in the matter of Fund. As long time resident of Anne Arundel County and owner of Law Bros. Supply in Glen Burnie, I fully support your efforts to carry forth this matter and firmly agree that a Storm Water Utility is desperately needed to check the further deterioration of our waterways.
George C. Law

In the case of stormwater, we all know the devastating impacts it creates, especially in the Chesapeake Bay shoreline communities like AA County. Historically, we have been unwilling to change the way we design and build structures (i.e. design and build so that stormwater surges are not produced or at least handled on-site) and have tried to manage the resulting problem by building expensive, and doomed-for-failure infrastructures to handle the problem. Our past practices of managing storm water (with culverts, underground pipe systems, retention ponds, etc.) have merely created expensive upkeep of systems that cannot be scaled to address the ever-growing problem. These approaches, by design, did not attempt to solve the problem's root cause, they simplistically and naively attempted to handle the symptoms of shortsighted design. We have in effect shifted the risk/problem to the future. Our "chickens" of the '60s, '70s, '80s, and '90s are now coming home to roost. We (developers, lenders, insurers, code officials, public officials, etc.) simply did not apply rigorous effort to addressing the root cause of the problem. Hopefully, we are gaining wisdom from our past actions and will assume our responsibility for being stewards of our communities and environment. I support the notion of a Watershed Restoration Fund. I know this may increase the cost of my doing development in AA County, but it is the right thing to do.
FURBISH, LLC

In 2003, the City of Annapolis enacted an ordinance requiring the creation of a Stormwater Utility Fund. The funds collected by the city are used to retrofit outdated stormwater systems which help to improve Chesapeake Bay and tributary water quality and to meet federal regulations under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Phase II . The Annapolis Environmental Commission wholeheartedly supports the creation of a similar county-wide fund to help protect and restore all of Anne Arundel County's waterways.
Corinne Irwin, Annapolis Environmental Commission

Severn River Association enthusiastically endorses the implementation of a Watershed Restoration Fund by the Anne Arundel County Council. Such a dedicated Enterprise Fund fills a critical void. Allowing stormwater to be piped into waterways has caused severe erosion that has left the Severn River with a degraded watershed and very few dollars to restore the damage to it's first order streams. This fund, like sewer, drinking water and garbage allows us each to pay for the impacts we have caused with the hope of restoring the significant problems that impair the River.
Robert vom Saal, President

The Lower Western Shore Tributary Team, a governor appointed group of individuals representing local, state, federal government, business, non-profits, the Agricultural community and citizens, enthusiastically supports the proposed Watershed Restoration Fund for A. A. County. One of the Team's major recommendations to ensure recovery of the Chesapeake Bay is Stormwater Utilities.
Claudia Donegan
Tributary Team Coordinator, Lower Western Shore

South River Federation strongly endorses a Watershed Restoration Fund for A.A. County. In order to make real progress in cleaning up and restoring the South River, this inundation of stormwater runoff must be addressed..fees are fair and will provide needed monies.
Kincey Potter, President, South River Federation

Robert Gallagher, Citizen, Shadyside, Maryland. My family has lived on the West River for 10 years. During that time, and particularly the past two years, we have witnessed significant degradation in water quality associated with storm water runoff. We urge the Council to support a Watershed Restoration Fund.

Earl Bradley, "The Sierra Club strongly supports the Watershed Restoration Fund."